Eating Disorder Awareness Week

This week is dedicated to raising awareness of eating disorders, and the people who live with the consequences of eating disorders.

There are many reasons for a person ending up with an eating disorder, but there are a couple of things that they all have in common, and there's a definition that gives us an idea of what those are.

"Eating disorders are characterised by an abnormal attitude towards food that causes someone to change their eating habits and behaviour." (Source: NHS)

So it's an attitude towards food. But it doesn't have to be about body image.  Even though we often think it does.

Not all eating disorders are the same

Most people recognise that food is fuel for the body, and many see it as something to enjoy. But for some people eating is an effort, and for some it's the source of an addiction.

What I want us to do, is to think of something really unpleasant, something we have to do occasionally but hate.  Something like the worst lesson of the week, or visiting an elderly relative in a care home...

Have to say it: she's got good legs for an octogenarian

Just think for a moment, the feelings of dread before it happens, the total lack of enthusiasm, like a dark cloud over the day that only lifts after it's over.

Now imagine that happening every day, two or three times a day.  Imagine the stress and anxiety that it causes. It's not something to take lightly.

If you know someone who has problems with eating, whether it's anorexia, bulimia or binge eating, it might be worth letting them know that you care.

And if anyone feels they need help with an eating disorder, let them know that help is available.

Awards' season

As the bleakest part of the bleak mid-winter approaches, celebs come out in force to give each other a big pat on the back.  Yes, it's awards' season again

Here are some of the award ceremonies that have taken place:

Jan 11th:  72nd Golden Globe Awards
Jan 24th: 26th Producers Guild Awards
Jan 25th 21st Screen Actors' Guild Awards
Feb 8th: 57th Grammys
Feb 8th: 68th BAFTAs

(For anyone who's going to be in Hollywood any time soon, the 87th Academy Awards, AKA the 'Oscars', will take place at the Dolby Theatre on Feb 22nd)

Now I'm not saying that Awards ceremonies aren't good (although, have you ever tried watching one all the way through?), and they do provide some awesome red carpet moments

My question is whether they are fair.

The thing is that lots and lost of money are spent on them and there's only a handful of artists that are ever recognised, despite there being hundreds of thousands of people involved in bringing the best quality films, music and theatre to our eyes and ears. There are 24 categories and I defy any of you to name them all, yet most people can name best actor, actress, director an film.

I'm not saying we shouldn't have awards nights, actually I think we should have more.  Andy Warhol said that everyone would have 15 minutes of fame, but some people get way more than that.  I reckon everyone is a potential celebrity, and everyone is awesome in some way or other, so let's celebrate it.

How about an awards ceremony for youth in Copeland? What awards would you give, and who would you nominate: answers via the FB page, and I might look to hosting an awards night in the future.

My week, this week

This week I got to attend the Distington Big Local meeting for families and young people.  Application forms for funding are available via Alan Lowe if anyone has any ideas of how best to improve life in Distington, so get your thinking caps on. 

Food banks

This week I want to talk about food banks.  First off, what is a food bank?

"A food bank or foodbank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough food to avoid hunger."
(Wikipedia)

Okay, so we know what it's for, who it's for and how it works.  Thanks Wikipedia.

Now for a harder question: should we be giving food to food banks?

On the one hand you might say "Yes, of course.  If we don't give food to food banks, then the people who use them are going to starve. That's obvious. You stupid?

Okay, fair enough, but what happens to left over food from big supermarkets and restaurant chains, do they donate it to food banks?

Some do -- Sainsburys works with a charity called Fareshare, to redistribute food -- but not every company does its bit.

Did you know that 30-50% of all food produced in the UK is wasted, and that half of that total is from the food industry? (Source: McCarthy/Tesco)
That means that 15-25% of all our food is thrown away by businesses.

Now what if instead of binning it, they were to give it away to people who were poor?